Saturday, January 26, 2013

Red Pepper Chocolate Tart

Chocolate Tart

Who loves chocolate knows that it is not just something you simply eat with heavenly pleasure. It is alive, it breathes and has a heart beat. Just one bite and suddenly you reach an intimate connection. That’s when it ceases to enchant your throat and starts a diaologue through words of aroma, essence, gusto, pungency, savor, spiciness, sweetness, bitterness, tang and zing. I’ll stop here.

This time I’ve decided to make single portion chocolate tarts with a zing peppery touch. A dash of red pepper in the shortcrust, a dash in the sponge filling and a dash on top. At first you can hardly taste the red pepper, it hits you softly only in the after taste and when you realize it’s there it calls for another bite and before you know it, it’s gone! This is why the choice of a single portion tart, you stick with what you have and can’t go for another slice, which avoids the looking at the scale for any extra weight gaining. Although even a single portion doesn’t easily get off the thighs.

For the filling: bring the milk to a boil, remove from heat and pour over the chocolate. Whisk until chocolate has completed melted. Blend the softened butter and sugar until fluffy, then add egg and continue mixing. Add the red pepper, the shifted flour and baking powder and finally gently fold in the chocolate. Mix until all ingredients have blended in. Fill the tarts remaining below the rim (see image). Bake in the oven at 180°C for circa 20 minutes.